The Irish minister, who is currently in Riyadh, was speaking during a seminar on food security at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce & Industry. O’Keeffe said that Irish companies have evinced keen interest to expand their links in the Saudi market and to forge joint ventures.

“My mission with 50 Irish companies aims to further develop the political, economic and commercial links that exist between Saudi Arabia and Ireland,” he said.

Despite the tough global trade climate and financial recession, Irish exports to the Kingdom grew to over 400 million euros last year, he added.

The seminar, entitled “Food Security — Global Trends and Opportunities,” was organized by consulting and investment firm Farrelly & Mitchell in cooperation with the Enterprise Ireland. Shoura Council member and Farrelly’s Saudi partner Usama M. Al-Kuri, Irish Ambassador Niall Holohan and Enterprise Ireland’s CEO Rank Ryan were present. The event was also attended by senior Saudi and Irish officials as well businessmen.

“My presence here, my presence in Russia recently and my presence in Brazil into the future means we are targeting those high-performance countries where in fact we can sell our products,” said O’Keeffe.

He added that he is hopeful of abundant opportunities in the Kingdom, which has announced a $400 billion five-year investment package to accelerate growth, boosting demand for construction materials and training, while the rising population is consuming more imported food.

Al-Kurdi, who is also associated with the Riyadh-based Saudi agriculture investment firm Agroinvest, said that Farrelly has recently opened an office in Riyadh to serve the local market and Gulf region. It is currently working on a variety of large-scale agribusiness consultancy, mergers and acquisitions projects, he added.

Al-Kurdi pointed out that Agroinvest, which plans to raise SR1 billion early next year, will focus on its home market before any expansion abroad.

Farrelly & Mitchell’s Riyadh-based regional manager, Ibrahim Malas, identified the key development opportunities within Saudi Arabia, which include poultry, aquaculture and greenhouse enterprises. “These major opportunities within the Kingdom can be exploited through key areas such as international investment, knowledge transfer and the scaling up of local production through merger and acquisition activity,” he said.

This event provided an opportunity for a panel of local and international speakers to present varied perspectives on global farming and food trends and their impact on the Middle East agribusiness environment. The seminar was of the opinion that the rapidly changing economic, agricultural and food landscapes in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East has created a necessity for a first class advisory and consultancy service focused purely on the agrifood sector.